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How to Raise Brine Shrimp

Brine shrimp are a nutritious and easy to raise feed tropical and marine life. Although there are plenty of artificial dietary options, brine shrimp provide important lipids, vitamins, and amino acids many fish need.[1] Brine shrimp are also a fun creature for children to raise. Brine shrimp, especially in their adult stages, can be bought in most pet stores, but it is sometimes more convenient to raise them at home. Raising them will be easier if you have experience with maintaining a saltwater tank system, but this article will detail the essentials of raising brine shrimp, so you will know how to begin raising them and how to maintain the tank.

Determine the best location for the tank. Saltwater tanks should not be near any windows, doors, heater vents, direct sunlight, or air conditioners so the temperature of the water does not change rapidly. The tank should also be set up near electrical outlets because you will need to plug in the heater and air pump.

Leave room between the tank and the wall so the air pump will easily fit.

Fill the tank with a saltwater mixture. Make a saltwater mixture with aquarium salt and reverse osmosis filtered water.[2] Fill the 10 gallon tank with 9 gallons of water so there is room for the salt. Then, add the salt per manufacturer’s instructions.[3]

The salt container will have specific instructions for calculating the amount of salt necessary for your tank.

Don’t worry if you add too much or too little salt; you can adjust the levels before adding the brine shrimp cysts.

Track the salinity with a refractometer or a hydrometer. The salinity of the tank should always be 30-35 ppt (parts per thousand).[4]Use the instructions for your refractometer or hydrometer to measure the salinity of the tank, and add more salt or more reverse osmosis water accordingly.

Operating the refractometer or hydrometer involves placing some of the water inside via a dropper or other apparatus.

Test the water until you reach the correct salinity.

If you’ve mixed the saltwater correctly according to the manufacturer’s instructions, you will not have to tinker with the mixture.

Set up a slow air-powered sponge filter. This is the best filter to use in the tank because it will provide aeration, filter the tank water, and won’t suck up the tiny brine shrimp. The filter should include a tube, a sponge, and a hookup for the air pump; if it does not include the hookup for the pump, buy this separately.

You can place the sponge filter on the bottom of the tank or mount it to the side of the tank, depending on the model you purchased.

There are many cheap filters on the market nowadays, but do not scrimp on filtering equipment.

Attach the air pump to the sponge filter. Using airline tubing, attach the end of the sponge filter to the end of the air pump.[6] Plug the pump in, and the filter will begin working. Keep the filter on a sturdy surface behind or below the tank.

Install the thermometer using manufacturer’s directions. Place the thermometer on the opposite end of the heater so it is easily visible. Once both the heater and thermometer are installed, you can adjust the heater so the tank is always at the correct temperature: 68°F (20°C)-79°F (25°C). Turn it up or down accordingly.

Keep the tank between 68°F (20°C)-79°F (25°C) for 24 hours. Once the tank has maintained this temperature for 24 hours, it is stable enough to hold the brine shrimp. Check the temperature at least twice a day—if the heater is accidentally unplugged or the temperature drastically changes for any reason, your brine shrimp could die.

Place the cysts in the water, and they will hatch after 15 to 20 hours.[8] If your tank is the correct temperature and salinity for the shrimp, they will hatch within a day. 12 hours after that, you will have young shrimp swimming around in the tank.

Enjoy watching the brine shrimp population grow. Brine shrimp will multiply quickly. They will begin as tiny cysts and end up as small shrimp. You do not need to aid them in hatching or growing, since they will do so naturally in a well-maintained tank.

If your brine shrimp are not growing or hatching, check the salinity and temperature of the tank for problems.

Use a gravel vacuum to change the water in the hatchery regularly, about 20% (2 gallons) per week.[11] Turn off the aeration and circulation system before changing the water. Let the air in the tank settle so it is not moving. Shine a bright light at the surface of the tank so the brine shrimp all flock to it.

Siphon the dirty water off the bottom of the tank with the gravel vaccum.

Then, replace the siphoned water with some of the marine salt mixture you made earlier.

Check the salinity and temperature of the tank to make sure the levels are good.

Rinse or replace the sponge filter every 1-4 weeks.[12] The sponge filter may get noticeably dirty. To rinse or replace the filter, turn off the air pump, remove the sponge, and rinse it in the used tank water, or non-chlorinated (conditioned with Prime or other conditioner) room temperature-or current temperature of your aquarium water. When it is clean again, replace it, and turn the air pump back on. You will only need to get a brand new sponge if it disintegrates. It houses useful bacteria to keep the tank healthy. Never rinse the sponge or any other filter in anything other than used tank water or conditioned water. To rinse filter media in too hot, too cold or chlorinated water destroys the bacteria that supports a healthy tank.

Use a flashlight to herd the brine shrimp away from the sponge filter when doing this.

Regularly check the tank’s temperature, salinity, and cleanliness. All of these factors are important to keep in mind when you are maintaining a saltwater habitat. Get into the habit of checking these factors weekly.

Use enrichment formulas. Selcon is a popular brand, and there are many others available at most aquarium stores. Ask an employee for help if you have trouble finding the formulas, or use an online store to buy the food in bulk.

Feed only small amounts, but do so several times a day. Do not overfeed the brine shrimp! If the tank water begins to look excessively murky and dirty with food, clean the tank and feed the brine shrimp smaller amounts.

Begin harvesting the brine shrimp after 8 days. Of course, if you are raising brine shrimp purely for pleasure, you do not have to harvest them, but after 8 days, the adults are large enough to catch with a net and feed to other fish.

Turn off the circulation system. After about 10 minutes, the empty cysts shells will float to the surface, and unhatched cysts will sink to the bottom.[13] Now, you can more easily catch the live brine shrimp.

In their first stage of development, brine shrimp nauplii do not feed, but consume their own energy reserves stored in the cyst. Wild brine shrimp eat microscopic planktonic algae. Cultured brine shrimp can also be fed particulate foods including yeast, wheat flour, soybean powder or egg yolk.

All shrimp are both male and female, the shrimp will either lay eggs or hatch them in an egg sac behind its legs. There aren't any special things to trigger this you just have to slightly increase the water temperature.

What's the difference between aquarium salt/marine salt and table salt?

wikiHow Contributor

Community Answer

Aquarium or marine salt is used for aquariums, obviously -- you can't use normal table salt as a substitute for these salts because table salt contains chemicals that are harmful to all kinds of aquatic species.

Mix 1 tablespoon of salt per liter of water. Make sure that the salt does not contain iodine. Most table salt has added iodine, so check first. Rock salt, sea salt, Himalayan salt, ice cream salt are usually fine.

About This Article

To raise brine shrimp, set up a saltwater tank with a slow air-powered sponge filter attached to the pump and a heater so you can monitor the water temperature. Next, buy a packet of dehydrated brine shrimp cysts and pour them into the tank's water. The eggs will hatch within 15 to 20 hours! Feed the baby shrimp small amounts of yeast or powdered milk every day, and you can start harvesting the shrimp in about 8 days!